Coin-controlled vending apparatus



APPLICATION FILED JUNE 6.1919- Pawnted Oct. 5, 1920,

GEORG KARL VILHE-LIVI J OHANSON, OF STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN.

ColN GONTRoLLED VENDING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 5, 1920.

Application filed June 6, 1919. Serial No. 302,158.

T 0 all to 72 cm it may concern Be it known that I, Gnone KARL VIL-.

HELM JoHANsoN, a subject of the King of Sweden, residing at Stockholm,in the Kingdom of Sweden, have invented a new and useful Improvement inCoin-Controlled Vending Apparatus, of which the following is aspecification.

The present invention relates to a coin controlled vending apparatus formeters for gas, water, and other fluids, and has for its purpose toprovide an apparatus of the said kind which shall be as simple andinexpensive as possible and yet operate in a periectly reliable manner.The invention relates to that kind of such apparatus which are providedat the lower end of a coin chute, with a movable member connected withthe delivery valve for the fluid, which member is adapted to be operatedthrough the medium of a coin introduced into the chute by a secondmember located opposite said first named member and adapted to beoperated from the outside of the apparatus so as to open said valve, andwhich are provided below the coin chute with a rotatable disk connectedwith the meter, said disk being provided with a pocket for receiving thecoin.

The present invention is characterized by this that said disk is rigidlyconnected with a cam disk provided at its circumference with a notchengaged by a lug on the member connected with the delivery valve, whensaid valve is closed, and that the pocket in the firstmentioned disk hassuch oblique shape and is so positioned relatively to said notch, thatwhen said lug engages said notch, said pocket is retained in a slightlyoblique position below the coin, chute, so that when said firstnamedmember is actuated by said second member through the medium of the coinfor opening the valve, the coin will be pressed downward into the pocketand thus positively brought along during the rotation of the disk.

One embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanyingdrawing in which Figures 1, 2, and 3 show the apparatus with its partsin different positions.

In the construction illustrated, 1 denotes the coin chute which is openin front, or covered by a transparent pane or covering, so that it ispossible to ascertain from the outside jVllCtllQl there are any coins insaid chute. 2 denotes a member rotatable on the stud 3 and connectedwith the delivery valve for the gas in such manner that said valve ismaintained closed when the member 2 occupiesthe position illustrated inFigs. 1 and 2, but 15 open when said member is turned into the positionillustrated in Fig. 3. Opposite the member 2 there is located anothermember rotatable on the stud 5, said member 4 serving through the mediumof a projection 410 and a coin 6 put into the coin chute to move themember 2 from the position illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 to the positionshown n F 1g. 3. For this purpose said member 4 is provided with anoperating arm 7 projecting outside the casing inclosing the apparatus,which casing is not shown in the drawing. A disk 8 is rotatablyjournaled beneath the coin chute 1, said disk being driven by the meterin any convenient manner, and being provided with a pocket 9 adapted toreceive the coin 6 from the coin chute 1. The members 2 and 4 arelocated on either side of the coin chute, the projec1 tion 10 on themember 4 projecting beneath the coin chute into the pocket 9 in the disk8, when in the position shown in Fig. 1 before the apparatus isoperated, thereby preventing the coins from dropping into said pocket.The disk 8 is rigidly connected to a cam disk 10 which is provided witha deep notch 17 into which a lug 16 on the member 2 may snap, beingactuated by a spring, when the disk has been turned one revolution,thereby causing the delivery valve for the gas to close, provided thatin the meantime n0 further coin has dropped into the pocket 9 andprevents, by engagement with the projection E21 on the member 2, the lug16 on said mem ber from snapping into said notch. During the movement ofthe dlSk'S said disk obstructs the path of the pro ection 40, which Vmay be turned inward only when the disk 8 occupies such position thatthe pocket 9 is in its uppermost position, provided that no further coinhas previously dropped into the pocket in which case such further coinprevents the member 4 from being turned inward. The movement outward ofthe member 4 while the disk 8 is rotating will have no effect whatsoeveron the operation of the apparatus. The member 2 is returned to initialposition by means of a spring or the like tending to turn said member 2in the direction to the right in the drawing.

As will be seen from Figs. 1 and 2. the pocket 9 in the disk 8 has suchoblique shape and is so positioned relatively to the notch 17 in the camdisk 10 rigidly connected with the disk 8, that when the lug 16 engagesthe notch 17, the pocket 9 is retained in a slightly oblique positionbelow the coin chute, so that when the member 2 is actuated by themember 4: through the medium of the coin 6, said coin will be presseddownward into the pocket 9 so that it will be positively brought alongduring the rotation of the disk 8.

The apparatus above described operates in the following manner:

When a coin has been put into the chute 1 through the upper opening 15the member 41: is moved outward by means of the arm 7 so that the coin 6may drop past the projection 40 into the mouth of the pocket 9 andoccupy a position intermediate the projection 40 on the member 4; andthe projection 21 on the member 2, as shown in Fig. 2. When the member 4is again moved inward the member 2 is moved to the left through .themedium of the coin 6, so that the lug 16 is lifted out of the notch 17and the delivery valve for the gas is opened. Simultaneously, the coinis forced to the bottom of the pocket 9, in which'position it maintainsthe member 2 in its position to the left, so that the gas valve remainsopen, as long as there is no consumption of gas so that the disk 8 willremain stationary.

If gas .is consumed the disk 8 will be able to rotate in the directionindicated by the arrows, on account of the lug 16 being out ofengagement with the notch 17. During the rotation the disk 8 will bringalong the coin 6 in the pocket, and when said coin has passed theprojection 4L0 it may drop into a coin receptacle, the lug 16 on themember 2 bearing against the periphery of the disk 10 maintaining thegas valve open. When the disk has been turned one revolution, however,the lug 16 will again snap into the notch 17, if a new coin has notdropped into the pocket thereby preventing said snapping movement. Whenthe lug 16 snaps into the notch '17 the deliveryof the gas will beinterrupted, causing the meter to stop. The

various members of the apparatus now occupy the positions shown inFig. 1. V7 hen another coin is put in, the same operation will berepeated. 7

It is suitable to provide the casing of the apparatus with a windowrendering it possible to ascertain if there are any coins in the coinchute. It will be understood that it is possible to fill the entire coinchute at once with coins, said coins dropping one by one into the pocketas the gas is consumed, without the arm 7 having to be operated for eachcoin.

I claim:

In a coin controlled vending apparatus for meters for gas, water, orother fluids, the combination of a coin chute, a member at the lower endof said coin chute adapted to be operated from the outside of the apparatus, a second member connected with the delivery valve for the fluidand located at the lower end of said coin chute opposite said firstnamed member in such manner as to be operated by said first named memberthrough the medium of a coin in the coin chute so as to open said valve,a lug on said second member, a cam disk at the lower end of said coinchute provided at its circumference with a notch adapted to be engagedby said lug on said second member connected with the delivery valve whensaid valve is closed, and a rotatable disk rigidly connected with saidcam disk and connected with the meter and located below said coin chute,said disk being provided with a pocket for receiving a coin having suchoblique shape and so positioned relatively to said notch in said camdisk that when said lug engages said notch said pocket is retained in aslightly oblique position below the coin chute, so that when said secondmember is actuated by said first named member through the medium of thecoin for opening the valve, the coin will be pressed downward into thepocket and thus positively brought along during the rotation of saiddisk.

GEORG KA RL VILHELM J OHANSON

